An armada of Shuttles had descended from the bowels of warp-space, eager to dump their exhausted passengers down on the barren surface of the Asteroid. Large plumes of dust erupted as the Shuttles hovered in place, their blue Warp engines shimmering and humming. Moments later there was an even louder humming sound, and hundreds of small blue orbs appeared beneath the hovering Shuttles. The orbs shimmered and flashed, and when they were gone, in their place stood the passengers, eager to begin their expedition.

The Protoss Expeditionary force immediately set to work making camp. Pylons were erected to power the other structures by scuttling Probes, beeping as they went about their work. This was but a temporary settlement, and would not require a Nexus. As soon as the quarry was retrieved, the Shuttles would go back to where they had come from without their cargo. If all went as planned, they would not be needed after the quarry was retrieved.

In the meantime a large group of a hundred or so Protoss gathered on a lofty dirt ridge overlooking the campsite. Most of them were mystics and historians, clad in gray robes glittering with blue crystals, but there was also a team of warriors dispatched with the Expedition just in case they encountered hostile creatures. Zealots with their shining blue Psi Blades stood guard around the group, holding their weapons at a resting position. Towards the front, several creatures encased in golden armored shells, Immortals, stood with their Phase Disruptors aimed outward.

To one side of the group of mystics and historians stood a Protoss much older and much shorter than the rest. His skin was dark grey and wrinkled. His eyes scanned the ragtag Expeditionary group with hope and approval.

"Attention, all," came a loud, booming voice from the center of the group. Everyone turned to face the speaker, a young, strong-looking Protoss with an air of authority about him. Everyone turned silent and stopped to listen.

"My name is Baelthas. I have gathered you all here today on this asteroid in the far reaches of space for a very important mission. No one has visited here since the Golden Era of Protoss Expansion, when the first Protoss settlers placed a beacon on this asteroid so we could find it later."

The crowd of mystics and historians murmured softly to one another, deeply intrigued. The older Protoss said nothing, and observed silently the speech given by Baelthas.

"You all have been told the reason for coming here," the young Protoss continued. "There is an ancient relic from that Golden Age so long ago that even now rests here on this Asteroid, waiting to be reclaimed by this expedition."

A hush went through the gathered crowd, who had long awaited this moment.

"I would like to call one of the Elders on this expedition to speak before our Expedition. Karazul, please step forward."

The older Protoss blinked with surprise, but smiled and walked up towards where Baelthas stood. The crowd of wide-eyed historians parted before him as he rose to stand next to the taller Protoss warrior.

"As Baelthas has told you, my name is Karazul," the Elder began. "I was part of the Expedition that first flew on the Great Motherships of old to colonize planets in the name of the Protoss. I remember little the details about the Motherships, but I can remember that they were enormous, and could wipe out entire planets."

A collective gasp rose through the crowd. Karazul nodded to Baelthas, who took the floor again.

"One of these great Motherships resides here, on this asteroid," the Warrior announced. "And we will be the first to awaken it, and bring it back into service against the foul armies of the Terrans and the demonic Zerg!"

The crowd let up a cheer, echoing across the desolate sands of the asteroid.

"Now come," Baelthas exclaimed. "It lies just over the next ridge!"

Karazul gazed in wonder up at the massive golden ship resting on the surface of the Asteroid. He had not seen the Purifier since he was but a young Apprentice, a librarian in service on the great ship. He remembered few aspects about his stay. Fleeting memories hovered in his mind of stacking books and scrolls, organizing them on shelves and wondering about what his life had in store for him. Well, now he was near the end of his days, and he was at least glad he had lived long enough to witness the return of the Motherships of old.

The crowd of Explorers let out a sigh of awe at the first sight of the Purifier. It was an unthinkably humongous creation, covering almost half of the asteroid. The Mothership resembled a massive three-pointed star, each of its three points serving as a command center lest one of the others get destroyed. Each point alone was big enough so house thousands and thousands of Protoss. And in the center of the monstrous ship was an equally giant cluster of tall pointed buildings, golden and filled with rows of doors and windows. An entire floating city.

For a long moment, no one spoke, thinking at how this giant ship would wreak havoc in the Protoss fleet.

"The Purifier," announced Baelthas. "And it is ours for the taking. All we have to do is access the main control center which will allow us to fly this create giant back to Shakuras. There, we will gather the remnants of our fleet for reconstruction"

"With this power, we can wipe out every Zerg in the galaxy!" piped up an eager Military strategist.

"Do not be too hasty," Karazul warned him. "Have we not learned our lessons from the past? The Zerg learn quickly, and adapt to any new technology we bring into play. If we throw this ship into combat too quickly, we may just as quickly lose it once more."

"The Elder is right," a Zealot announced, stepping forward. A flickering crystal on his left shoulder showed him to be of high rank amongst the Zealot forces guarding the expedition. "I am Servitor Khal, and I command the military forces stationed here. I have been in battle against the Zerg. When we first brought Carriers into play, the Zerg Mutalisks were decimated. That was before they sent their filthy Scourge in, which evaded their larger guns and sought out the central cores of the warships, destroying three of our Carriers. Yes, for those of you who have never been in combat, any weapon that we employ must be used with caution. This Mothership may seem like a savior, but mark my words. If we do not be careful, it may also fall prey to the ravages of the Zerg."

A silence fell over the crowd. The Mothership did not seem like such a wonderful salvation to them anymore. They had heard the words of someone who had fought the Zerg directly, and if this seemingly unbeatable titan could be defeated, then perhaps there was nothing they could do.

"Nevertheless," Baelthas spoke up, breaking the silence, "Motherships like these are being gathered from the far corners of the galaxy, and they will certainly make a difference to whatever ragged remnants of our fleet still survive. We will do what we can to defeat the Zerg, and with this ship, we will have the strength to do it. Now, enough talk. It is time to take control of the Purifier!"

The Protoss had not thought to have brought Observers to stand guard above the camp, or they would've spotted the Overlord slowly passing by, observing all that happening on the asteroid below. High above the reach of any of the Photon Cannons, the Overlord gazed down with mutated eyes that allowed it to see clearly from several hundred miles away. Its infested brain quickly analyzed the two options: stay around to watch some more, or retreat before possible Protoss air reinforcements arrived to patrol the area. The Overlord chose the second option as the better choice, and quickly relayed its sightings to the Cerebrate who controlled it with mind-signals. The Cerebrate responded with a confirmed order to return to the Hive Cluster, and the Overlord immediately complied. The Cerebrate wasted no time. It relayed an order out to the Hive Cluster, gathering together several Overlords and filling their carrying sacs with Zerg minions. He would not allow this Mothership to be awakened, and he was determined to make sure the Protoss did not achieve their goal.

"Let us awaken this Mothership!" cried Baelthas. "Karazul, bring forth the Scroll of Code."

The Elder Protoss removed from his belt a rolled-up scroll and unrolled it before the eager eyes of the crowd. Its surface glimmered with shimmering blue letters and arrows, a set of directions.

"I must stand before the entrance and recite this verse here," Karazul said. "This ship was shut down long ago, and can only be reanimated with this code. Afterwards it cannot be shut down again unless I speak this verse once more."

The party walked forward until they were standing directly under the entrance: two huge sliding gold gates that marked the entryway into the center area of the Mothership. Above them loomed the Mothership. It stretched on far past their sight, and stretched up far past their sight. It was a magnificent wonder of Protoss technology.

"When you are ready, Karazul," Baelthas told him.

Karazul stepped up to the giant golden doors and began mumbling verses from the scroll. Baelthas, Khal and the rest of the party bowed their heads in reverence and awaited the awakening of the great ship.

Karazul stopped at the end of the scroll and looked up at the doors. Everyone held their breath, expecting something marvelous to happen.

All was silent. Nothing stirred in the great golden ship.

"Is something wrong?" Baelthas asked the Elder. "Did you speak a verse wrong?"

"Everything was done correctly," Karazul replied, shaking his head. "I don't understand what's wrong."

As he spoke this, there was suddenly a brilliant flash of light. The words on the scroll glowed a brilliant blue, and a humming sound began. The empty portholes and windows of the ship flashed and shone with intense blue rays. Blue light shimmered and glowed from every building, every opening and cargo bay, exploding in one blinding burst of incredible light. The Protoss stepped back, covering their faces with their hands as the light enveloped them, blocking out all vision.

Suddenly, the light was gone, and everything was back to normal—except on the Mothership. A low hum now reverberated from the great engines of the thing. Blue lights shone throughout the ship, blinking and flashing and sliding across the armor-plated hull. And in the place where the buildings were now stood a flickering blue bubble of energy that stretched over the tops of the buildings, protecting the floating city from space and outside attack. And at the entrance to the ship, the great golden doors had slid open, revealing the inside of the Mothership.

A great cheer went up from the gathered Protoss.

"The Purifier has been reborn!" shouted Baelthas, which provoked another round of cheering.

"Let's board the ship, and see what is has in store for us!" cried several Historians.

"Come on!" The Protoss leader led his expedition up the ramp and into the great golden entrance that flashed with blue lights.

"We will stand guard outside, Baelthas," Servitor Khal called to him as they were about to enter the Purifier. "We will make sure no harm comes to you and your team."

"Of course, Servitor," Baelthas called back. "We will tell you when to board the ship. Until then, protect the entrance!"

With that, the Expeditionary team disappeared within the massive bowels of the glowing Mothership. Khal turned and looked out across the desolate wastelands of the asteroid. It seemed that no life was existent here, but of course, he could be wrong. There was no telling what beasts may have taken up residence here in the period of time after the Protoss left their ship on this asteroid. If any of them showed their ugly faces today, he and his men would be ready.